AR app brings print newspapers to life

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At Springwise, we have seen a rapid growth in the use of augmented reality. Innovative AR apps have included a virtual business card and an AR-connected cake that can play a message. Now, a German newspaper is using AR to combine traditional reading habits with the digital media. Bild newspaper has embedded an AR feature in its sports pages. The paper has partnered with the German Football League and streaming service DAZN to provide video highlights from the Bundesliga, German football’s top tier.

To use the AR feature, readers first download a free app. They then hold their smartphone over specially-marked photos in the paper. On the phone, the pictures turn into 30-second highlight clips from football matches. Bild hopes the AR videos will not only make the physical paper more attractive, but will also demonstrate the future of newspapers. According to Matthias Brügelmann, sports editor-in-chief of the Bild Group, readers “can now…enjoy direct and exclusive access to highly attractive video content. Augmented reality is already showing us what the newspaper of the future could look like.”

Bild has the largest circulation of any daily newspaper in Europe. The paper has indicated that in the future they will expand the AR app further to include additional topics. However, Bild’s new app is not German football’s only foray into using AR. Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich launched an AR app last year which will bring their Allianz Arena to life for fans. When fans point their smartphones at murals on the arena walls, the murals come to life on the screen.

Takeaway: While many media companies have moved to incorporate AR, it is unusual for a print newspaper to do so. Time will tell if Bild’s AR feature will appeal to the same people who buy print newspapers, or if the feature will help improve circulation. Will AR be the saviour of print media?

Website: www.bild.de
Email: [email protected]

Source: New feed 1